


Cheek to Cheek

by grimeysociety



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Smut, Friends to Lovers, Insomnia, everybody lives in the tower
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 06:41:15
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25549135
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/grimeysociety/pseuds/grimeysociety
Summary: She couldn’t start a new day already if she hadn’t slept, but here she was after 2AM on a Tuesday, lying on her back in bed.
Relationships: Darcy Lewis/Steve Rogers
Comments: 64
Kudos: 327





	Cheek to Cheek

**Author's Note:**

> I've been going through a really rough time in my personal life, and writing about these two makes me happy. Sometimes the thing that comforts me most is having two characters spending time together, just sitting in a room talking. And you know I love them dearly, and I love you, too.

Darcy hated the hours in between. It was too late to be up, in the socially acceptable sense, but she couldn’t sleep. She couldn’t start a new day already if she hadn’t slept, but here she was after 2AM on a Tuesday, lying on her back in bed.

She’d tried a lot of things, and she’d come to accept this was a part of her, though she’d hoped it was only a Lewis men thing. Her mom mentioned over and over again that Darcy’s father, uncles, grandfathers and great-grandfathers had all been insomniacs.

Truth be told, she hoped her father hadn’t given her this, when he hadn’t given her so many other things she needed in life. She wished he’d at least warned her, in his completely tactless way he mentioned her needing a ‘boob check’ every so often because breast cancer was common in Lewis women. That little piece of fatherly advice came soon after her first training bra at age twelve, and he left Darcy and her mom soon after.

Frank Lewis, what a gem. He was in Nevada now, with his second wife and two blonde kids that Darcy never met. She got photographs sent to her mom’s house every so often, showing the growth of her half-siblings. They seemed perfectly fine, but looked nothing like Frank.

When she thought of sharing this trait with her father, she thought of how he tried to cure it over the years, when he was out doing God knows what, leaving her mom in the lurch every time. He’d sometimes come home as the sun was coming up and Darcy would catch him on her way to the bathroom, puffy with sleep, as her dad put a finger to his lips in the stairwell, his shoes in his hands, on his way to the master bedroom.

Darcy flipped on her lamp and sat up, hugging her knees. It was a mild night, and if she chose to venture out she’d need a pair of pants at least. She scooped up a pair of sweatpants and tugged them on, gathering her hair up next to tie everything in a messy top bun. She walked out of her bedroom and down the hall, all the way to the front door, taking the keys out as she opened it and stepped into the floor outside her apartment.

Her feet were shuffling, but she could feel she was wide awake as she locked the door behind her, rubbing her eyes. She turned her heel to move toward the elevator and called it was a press of the button.

She hadn’t left the apartment before during one of these long nights. She usually sat on the couch or deep-dived YouTube, watching old shows, things blending together.

So it came as a surprise to find Steve Rogers sitting on the couch in the common room upstairs, his face illuminated by the screen in front of him. He was sunk far down into the cushions, legs spread with a severe look on his face. Darcy paused, blinking at him.

He spotted her and sat up slightly straighter, uncrossing his arms.

“Hey, Lewis.”

“Hey…” she said, drawing out the word. She walked over to the TV, turning to see what he was watching.

It was something in black and white, a Fred Astaire movie, in the middle of a tap-dancing scene. By the expression on Steve’s face, Darcy was unable to know if he was enjoying himself or not.

“ _Begin the Beguine_ ,” he muttered, and Darcy’s brows lifted ever so slightly. “That’s this number.”

She was sure her grandmother would have loved Steve to bits. Darcy’s eyes swung back to the TV and she stared at the sight of the dancers flying through the moves effortlessly. She didn’t want to turn away, but felt as though she should check on Steve.

“You okay?” she asked, and his eyes shifted to her.

His face slackened a little and he nodded.

“Yeah, I’m good.”

She wondered if this was because of the breakup with Sharon Carter. She knew about that sort of against her will. SHIELD was full of spies but within their nucleus of the Tower, there were no secrets about one another. Darcy didn’t see Steve as the type to comfort-eat ice cream and watch movies, but he was looking like he’d been there a while.

“I couldn’t sleep,” Darcy said, which was easy to admit.

“Me neither,” he muttered.

She finally moved to sit down beside him. The soundtrack had faded away, leaving the tap-dancing to fill the silence, and something inside Darcy told her to wait until was over, when the music rose up again. She swallowed, glancing his way.

“What movie is this, anyway?”

“ _The Broadway Melody of 1940_ ,” Steve murmured, and Darcy blinked at him. “You’re too young to know it -”

“Excuse me,” Darcy cut in, with mock-hurt, her hand on her chest. “I’ll have you know I’ve seen _Swing Time_ and _Top Hat_.”

His brow quirked and his lips drew into a little smirk Darcy knew well and she was glad he wasn’t as deflated as when she first walked in. She rolled her shoulders, sighing a little.

“You want anything from the kitchen? ’Cause if we’re watching a movie, I want some decent snacks…”

He followed her into the kitchen and she made popcorn in the microwave in a little steaming back, filling a plastic bowl with the stuff, and then grabbed some M&Ms to accompany it, glancing Steve’s way.

“Salty with the sweet,” she said, and Steve nodded.

“Obviously.”

She sat back down with him, the bowl in her lap with his hand dunking every minute or so. She didn’t keep quiet, since she wasn’t that interested in taking in the movie that was already halfway through its runtime.

“Sorry to hear about… you and Sharon,” she mumbled through a mouthful.

Steve looked her in the eye and then glanced up at the ceiling.

“You know I’m not subtle,” she added. “Give me some credit that I didn’t ask you straight away.”

Steve closed his eyes briefly, passing a hand over his face.

“Yeah, well, I was wondering how long it would take,” he muttered.

The credits were rolling and the TV was forgotten as Steve turned slightly in his seat, going in for more popcorn.

“You sure you’re okay?” Darcy asked, and he chewed, eyes averting.

“Yeah, it’s was pretty mutual,” he said. “I’m fine.”

Darcy was sure there was more to it than that, but Steve was known for not being exactly open. Darcy was the opposite, frequently in trouble for being too honest, too loud. Not that she wanted to be the center of attention, but she didn’t see much point in taking herself too seriously. It made it easier to be treated how she wanted, without people feeling they needed to restrain themselves.

He scratched the back of his head and Darcy’s eyes fell to the chain she could see partially hidden under his plain white t-shirt, and she realized they were his dog tails. She wondered if he ever took them off. Darcy’s grandfather had been buried in his as an eighty-five year-old man.

“I thought you guys were made for each other,” Darcy said, and Steve glanced back at her, frowning slightly before it melted away. “Both work at SHIELD, both blonde. Both really serious all the time.”

She punctuated the last part with a grumpy voice, frowning excessively.

“So what gives?” she said, dropping the act and throwing another M&M back. “If you two can’t work out, I guess love is really dead.”

“Well, I probably have a different dating style to you,” Steve retorted.

Darcy smacked her lips. “Yeah, ‘cause mine are usually born in this century and not related to my exes, either. What?”

She knew she’d hit the nail on the head, and it was up to Steve how the rest of the conversation went. He continued to stare her down for several seconds and then closed his eyes, a smile forcing its way out.

“You know I’m right,” Darcy said.

By the time she went to bed, it was after five, and Steve seemed inclined to see the night through. She left him on the couch. She saluted him before retreating, and he shook his head at her, a smile still on his face.

-

She didn’t immediately go back to the common room the next couple of nights, because she didn’t want to keep eating junk food through the night. It made her feel sort of gross the next day, as if the lack of sleep wasn’t bad enough.

She spent two nights re-reading _Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets_ before she decided to venture out once more. She thought about watching an old movie since Steve had already put her in the mood, only to find him face-down on the couch when she arrived.

“Uh, Steve?”

She prodded one of his massive shoulders. He was wearing a navy jacket, its hood covering his head, like he was hiding.

“She calmebuh…” he groaned into the cushion, and Darcy tilted her head, straining to hear.

“What?”

He moved his head slightly, one blue eye appearing from under his hood. He looked tired and sad.

“She called me ‘buddy’.”

Darcy didn’t have to wonder who he meant. He’d clearly got to the depression stage of his break-up, and Darcy was the lucky one to witness it.

“Oh, shit,” she whispered, and he nodded, turning his face to press it into the couch again. “When?”

“Couple hours ago,” he mumbled.

“And you’ve been here ever since?” Darcy asked, and he nodded.

She turned her heel and walked out, returning a few minutes later with two steaming mugs, a bag of marshmallows under her arm. She nudged Steve’s shoulder with her knee.

“Sit up, I got you hot chocolate,” she said.

She didn’t wait for him, kneeling by the coffee table and put the mugs down, then ripped open the bag to pick out a couple marshmallows to place them in each drink. Steve turned his head slightly and slowly moved back to sit up, pushing the hood off of his hair.

“Thanks.”

“No problem,” Darcy said, handing him a mug.

She picked up the other one and moved in beside him, their knees bumping. They sat in a contented silence for a few minutes while Darcy switched the channels over on the TV, until she found an episode of _Planet Earth_ and let it play in the background on a low volume.

“You could get her back, you know,” Darcy murmured, and Steve gave a short little laugh, somewhat bitter.

“No,” he said, drawing out the word. “That ship has sailed.”

She took a sip of her drink and waited, hoping he’d say more. She’d rather not press him. It wasn’t a habit she intended to make, but having Steve as her nocturnal pal was one of the better arrangements of her life, and pushing him too hard would definitely make him hide away.

“I’m not awake ‘cause she called me ‘buddy’,” he admitted, and he frowned a little. His finger tapped against the mug. “It doesn’t help –”

“You have insomnia, Steve, join the club,” Darcy said.

He burst into a smile, surprised by her.

“I’m baring my soul –”

“Oh, were you?” she drawled, pretending to check her nails. “I’ll tell you what your problem is, Steve.”

“I thought you might…”

“You need to get on Bumble or Tinder,” she said, narrowing her eyes at him. “If you’re not going to march over to Sharon’s place and throw her over your shoulder –”

“Is that what you think I’d do? Man-handle her into taking me back?” Steve said, and Darcy rose her eyebrow.

“I don’t know how men _think_ or _work_ ,” she retorted, shrugging. “Since I don’t have the widest range of experience… and you’re old, too.”

“Jesus, what’s in this?” Steve said, looking down at the hot chocolate he still held. His face fell a little. “I appreciate what you’re…”

Darcy felt her stomach inexplicably twist at the sight of his jaw ticking as his sentence fell away.

“You’re gonna be okay, Steve,” she said, and he nodded slightly, not seeming convinced. “But I think it could be fun doing things my way.”

She put aside her drink and snapped her fingers, then held her palm up toward him.

“Gimme your phone.”

He handed it over after unlocking it, looking vaguely amused as he sipped, watching her download Tinder and begin to build his profile.

“Tell you what,” she said, her hand going to her sweatpants pocket.

She pulled out her own phone and unlocked it, to put them side by side in each hand, to compare the profiles.

“That’s a nice photo,” Steve murmured, seeing Darcy’s picture of herself sipping a coke with a straw.

Darcy started flicking through various photos of Steve, trying to find something suitable, frowning at the lack of choices.

“Do you just take pictures of landscapes and food?”

“I don’t like self-portraits,” he muttered, somewhat defensive.

She found one of Sharon fast, faster than she expected, so he hadn’t deleted any of those memories just yet. It was a photo of her smiling at him, not the camera, in Central Park when it had snowed.

“You’ve gotta delete –”

“I don’t want to,” he said, and Darcy pressed her lips together, nodding, moving on.

She finally found a photograph they could use, Steve looking only mildly brooding in a picture taken by Sharon most likely, on a beach somewhere.

“Thirst trap, yes,” Darcy murmured, selecting the shirtless snapshot. “Girls will come running.”

“Thirst trap?” Steve repeated, and Darcy shot him a look.

“Don’t play naïve, you know exactly what I mean,” she retorted.

There was a short silence between them and Steve pointed at another photo of Darcy, one of her leaning over at a dinner table, her shirt riding low and exposing a good couple inches of her cleavage.

“I _think_ I know what you mean,” he said quietly.

Darcy snorted, finally handing him his phone back.

“Go ahead. Have fun.”

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” Steve said, eyes widening slightly. “You have to help me.”

“Only if you help me, then,” Darcy said.

She scooted closer to him, examining the matches as they surfaced. Steve’s first one was a NYU graduate with long blonde hair and tanned skin. She had the whitest teeth Darcy had ever seen, and Steve didn’t have to ask her opinion, automatically swiping right.

Darcy stared at the side of his face as he kept swiping right at each woman, all of them effortlessly beautiful.

“What are we even _doing_ here?” she said aloud. “Just DM a Victoria’s Secret model on Instagram.”

Steve looked at her, his eyes falling to her phone.

“Why haven’t you done anything?”

“Watching you is more fun,” she retorted. When he stared her down she relented. “Alright. Let’s see the dregs…”

She made a show of clearing her throat, beginning to flip through each new profile. Some were okay, others seemed terrible and unfair compared to Steve’s choices. He hadn’t rejected anyone, and Darcy was lucky if she found one that peaked her interest.

“Sad,” she muttered, and then a profile popped up that made her pause.

The man’s name was Antonio and he had dark hair, muscles and a thick beard, smiling in the first photograph… but he was holding a giant fish. She looked at another photograph, biting her lip. He wore a fitted tank top, in a post-workout selfie, his bronze skin shining with sweat.

“Um,” she said, and Steve shifted beside her.

“What is it?”

“I… I don’t want to be graphic,” Darcy said but then immediately added, “Except I want him to split me open like a coconut and leave me on the side of the road.”

They shared a glance for several seconds, until Steve gave a snort, turning his head away to laugh into his shoulder, and Darcy began to giggle.

“Is that too much?” she said, shimmying a little.

“Jesus Christ,” Steve gasped. “Are you okay?”

“What, it’s probably what those girls are hoping you’d do to them.”

Steve shook his head at her, still laughing. Darcy swiped right on her guy but left her app alone, leaning over to watch Steve staring down at his phone.

“You know, ‘hello’ is a pretty decent opener,” she said, and his eyes snapped to hers.

“I’m not ready for that…”

She crawled into bed after five again, glad she only had the hot chocolate. By the time she was heading out, Steve was smiling when she saluted him.

“Thanks, for this.”

She gave him a little wink.

-

“How’d the fisherman go?” Steve asked.

They were watching _The Palm Beach Story,_ and Darcy glanced at the side of Steve’s face, wondering why he was bringing this up now. She let out a raspberry.

“That bad?”

“He was rude pretty fast,” she replied, and Steve tutted.

“Damn.”

“You saw what I have to contend with,” she said, and he turned to look at her, smirking. “What am I doing wrong?”

“Show me the profile again, so we can see what you’re working with,” he said, putting his hand out.

Darcy sighed, shoving her phone toward him. She watched as he flicked through her pictures, shaking his head.

“See, there’s nothing about you –”

“Guys don’t care about that type of stuff on Tinder,” she retorted. “I’m not going on there for stimulating conversation.”

“Why don’t you describe some positive traits?” Steve said, and Darcy glanced away.

“Massive tits,” she said, wiping some crumbs from her chest.

“Nope, try again,” Steve said, not missing a beat.

“Oh, you mean like a _personality_ ,” Darcy said, putting on a ditsy voice before letting her face fall again.

Her mood had been pretty poor because of the shirtless fisherman. It started out well enough, and then he called her a little slut for not sending him nudes. Darcy had come close to sending him back pictures of Kermit the Frog just to see how he’d react. Then he called her a bitch for not replying at all and then she hadn’t slept.

“Homicidal tendencies? Parentheses, _sometimes_.”

She took her phone back at settled down further in her seat, huffing.

Eventually, they ended up on the floor, a box of Cheez-Its between them as they stared at the ceiling and ate. The TV was still on but Darcy hadn’t bothered with watching whatever else was playing after the movie.

“Do you ever feel like we could be doing something better with our time?” Darcy asked.

Steve’s mouth was full. “Whaddaya mean?”

“Like, I could use all this time learning a language,” she said. “Thousands of hours of my life not sleeping, and instead I eat junk food and look at dating apps. That, and look at videos on YouTube of stupid shit.”

“Yeah, but you can’t concentrate when you know you’re meant to be sleeping,” Steve said, putting a hand behind his head. “So what’s the alternative? Lying in bed and waiting until morning?”

“I just…”

Darcy hesitated, closing her eyes. She sighed.

“What if years from now I think ‘God, I wasted so much time’?” she whispered.

The silence between them felt different, and she rolled onto her side, one hand delving into the Cheez-Its to grab a couple. She tossed them back.

“What have you tried?” Steve asked eventually, and she chuckled.

“Uh, what haven’t I tried? Pills, herbal and the harder stuff… yoga, exercise of all kinds, books, meditation, black out blinds, cutting out caffeine…”

“Alright,” Steve said. “Sorry, I just… I figured there might be something you hadn’t thought of.”

“What about you, why can’t you sleep?” she asked.

She looked Steve in the eye and saw his eyes change and his gaze shifted back to the ceiling.

“It’s not genetic, unless there was somethin’ in the serum Erskine forgot to tell me about,” he said. He bit his lip. “Can’t seem to…”

“Do you have bad dreams?” Darcy asked.

“Why, why would you think I’d have those?” he muttered and Darcy’s brows lifted.

“Why’d you break up with Sharon?” Darcy added for good measure, a smile spreading across her face.

She began to cackle as Steve gave a long-suffering sigh, putting a hand over his eyes. His hand darted out and he poked her in the ribs, and Darcy gave a short shriek of surprise, tipping the Cheez-Its over when she reeled back.

“Don’t be nosy, Lewis,” he said, sitting up, helping her pick up the crackers to put them on the coffee table.

“I can’t help it, it’s like my insomnia,” Darcy replied airily. “It’s under an all-encompassing umbrella of Dumbass Disease, and it’s incurable.”

Steve wiped his hands on his pants. “I guess we got that in common.”

She nudged him. “You want a hot chocolate?”

-

Darcy really tried for the next few nights. She figured the data entry she’d been doing for Jane had fried her brain enough during the day to render her unconscious, but although her eyes had stung overtime from staring at her screen too long, she hadn’t been able to reap the benefits come nightfall.

“This is stupid,” she hissed to Steve, who was exactly where she expected him to be, sitting on the couch after three AM with his hands in his jacket pockets.

“It’s incurable.”

“I used to think, well, fuck it,” she went on, ignoring him. “I’ll live a shorter life. That’s fine. I’m here for a good time, not a long time –”

“Except?”

“Except this isn’t a good time!” Darcy snarled, then balled her hands into fists. “God.”

“You wanna go somewhere?” Steve asked, and Darcy scrubbed her face, his words taking a few seconds to properly sink in.

“What?”

“Come on, Lewis,” he said, and he took her by the elbow, abandoning the TV.

He walked them out to the hallway and hit the elevator button to go up, and Darcy looked up at him for some idea of what he was up to.

“Where are we going?”

“I have a pretty high security clearance,” Steve said, rocking on his heels.

Darcy had never seen him like this before and frowned at him with suspicion, narrowing her eyes.

“You should open with that on your Tinder –”

“Who says I don’t?”

“Again, why bother? Go to a deli and point at a woman,” Darcy said, demonstrating to the empty space between them. “Say ‘c’mere’ and she’ll come on the spot and then fucking _crawl_ to you.”

“That’s… an interesting visual.”

“I’m sorry, I’m just in a bad mood,” Darcy said with a little sigh. “Where are we going?”

“Upstairs, Stark’s penthouse,” Steve said, just as the elevator doors opened for them.

He stepped inside and Darcy followed, frowning deeper. Steve leaned over her to press the button for the very top floor, before swiping his card from his pocket. The elevator sprang to life as Darcy met his eye.

“Tony’s not going to let you up there.”

“He’s in California for the week,” Steve said, brows rising. “So…”

She followed him out when they reached the penthouse, the lights coming on as they stepped through.

“JARVIS will rat us out –”

_“Actually, ma’am, I understand that Captain Rogers requires discretion –”_

Darcy put a hand on her chest as she jolted, not expecting the AI to address her. She saw Steve smirk in the corner of her eye as he walked on.

“Come check out the view.”

Darcy was busy staring at the expanse of marble and lush carpets, the long bar at one end of the room, the gigantic fireplace in another corner. She’d never been up there before, and she was going to make the most of it, walking over to the bar to jump over, giggling as she nearly toppled over.

Steve’s head appeared over the edge, watching as Darcy crouched to inspect all the bottles.

“What’s the most… asshole drink I can pour myself?”

“Tony’s got scotch older than you somewhere down there,” Steve said.

Darcy looked up, grinning. “But does he have anything older than you?”

Steve shook his head, laughing. “No.”

“Well, then I’m not interested.”

She grabbed a bottle of Goldschläger and stood up, taking two little tumblers from the shelf behind her.

“I’m afraid to ask –”

“It’s cinnamon,” Darcy said, and she unscrewed the lid, pouring a couple fingers full. “And it’s got little gold flakes in it.”

“Does it add to the flavor?”

“Nope,” Darcy said. “Drink.”

She tipped her glass back, watching Steve do the same, only for him to pull away with a grimace on his face.

“You can have that,” he muttered, voice tight, putting the glass aside.

He walked out and Darcy followed, sipping on the liqueur as they stepped out onto the balcony, the cool night air hitting her in the face. She heard a helicopter somewhere overhead, the surrounding city still alive around them, wide awake.

“There’s a Jacuzzi,” Steve said, and Darcy whipped her head toward him.

“I don’t have a swimsuit.”

They managed fine. They both stripped down to their underwear and Darcy stepped into the bubbling pool at the edge of the balcony, and she made a contented humming sound as she settled into her seat, her glass still in hand.

She gave a sip as Steve sat opposite her, their eyes meeting.

“One of your better ideas,” she said, and he winked at her.

-

A couple nights later, Darcy tried doing stretches on her bedroom floor while spraying lavender around. She thought she might be able to get a couple hours in tops, but she couldn’t find the right groove. Nothing felt comfortable enough.

She marched into the common room, tears of frustration in her eyes, wringing her hands.

“I did the thing,” she said, her voice wobbling. “The thing didn’t work.”

“Okay,” Steve said, sitting up a little straighter, putting out a hand. “C’mon, sit down.”

“No, I wanna…”

Darcy didn’t know what she wanted, but she was restless.

“Can we walk somewhere? Leave?”

“Okay,” he said again, and he rose from his seat. “You got shoes?”

Darcy looked down, remembering she hadn’t even put on slippers or socks. She sniffled, shrugging. He followed her down to her place and then they ducked out again as Darcy tugged on her sneakers, leaning against Steve for support in the elevator.

“Shoes only put another inch on me,” she muttered, breaking the tension.

She didn’t want to cry anymore.

“At least you don’t crouch when you talk to me,” she added.

Steve gave a little smile. “I should lift you up.”

“Throw me over my shoulder when I piss you off, too?” Darcy retorted, and he ducked his head.

“Yeah.”

As they stepped out into the street, Darcy’s hands were in her pockets while they walked, and Steve was kind enough not to sprint off immediately. She took a deep breath.

“Okay, let’s go.”

She took off, knowing her dignity had never been an issue with Steve. She didn’t care if she looked like an idiot, running down the street. He slowed down for her exponentially – Darcy had seen the videos, the man could keep up with a speeding car – which she appreciated since it was still before four in the morning.

She ran around the block, stopping to catch her breath only once, bending at the waist as she did it, Steve jogging on the spot beside her.

“C’mon, Lewis, double-time.”

“Fuck you, old man,” she gasped, and he laughed.

“Drop and gimme –”

She threw a punch, managing to bump his arm, and he stepped aside, grabbing her elbow to stop her doing it again.

“That’s elder abuse.”

“It’s about time someone did it,” Darcy replied, and she was still panting, wiping the sweat from her face. She burst into a grin.

They went to the 7-Eleven nearby and bought Slurpees.

“My treat,” Steve said, and Darcy couldn’t stop smiling.

He chose blue while she chose red, offering hers when they began to walk back side by side. He nodded, but then shook his head.

“Nah, mine’s better.”

“Blue raspberry isn’t better than cherry,” Darcy retorted, sipping his drink. She licked her lips. “Okay, they both have their merits.”

Steve burst out laughing at that and Darcy nudged him with her elbow.

-

“This is the first time in four days my meal hasn’t been hot pockets,” Darcy said, and Steve snorted, chewing his mouthful of pizza.

They each had a box on their laps, watching Darcy’s choice of movie, _Big Trouble in Little China_. She’d seen this movie about a million times and knew it inside out, instead watching Steve for his reactions for the majority of it.

She felt a hand on her face sometime later and stirred awake, the credits running on the TV in front of them as the common room came back to her.

“Lewis, you were drooling on my shoulder.”

“Sorry,” she mumbled, wiping her mouth. “What time is it?”

“Nearly six,” Steve whispered.

She sat up with a groan. “Better head to bed…”

She stretched as she stood, yawning.

“Jesus Christ.”

She gave a half-hearted salute that time, hearing Steve’s soft laughter as she walked out.

-

“What do you miss?” she murmured, a couple nights later.

“About what?”

“Anything,” she said. “Anything from back then.”

Steve blinked, drawing in a breath.

“Well…”

“Not people, or the… the manners or whatever,” Darcy said. “That’s obvious, and way too easy an answer.”

The TV was playing infomercials for cubic zirconia in various forms of jewelry. Darcy pictured herself holding each item up for the camera, trying to find new synonyms for ‘shining’ every time she grinned at the camera. Maybe she’d have some mental break on air and scream ‘fuck y’all forever’.

“The good ol’ days,” she murmured.

“Common misconception,” Steve said, with a rueful little smile.

Darcy had come to know it well, that particular smile. He did it when she thought she wasn’t looking, watching something on the TV from a time he was alive for. He sometimes had a thousand yard stare and she wanted to take him by the chin to look him in the eye, to remind him he wasn’t there anymore. Of course, she never did that.

“I guess knowing how much something costs,” he said. “Inflation confused me for a little while. And bananas. And clothes.”

“What about the bananas?” Darcy asked, backtracking.

“They don’t taste the same,” Steve said, and Darcy tilted her head for effect.

“You’re shitting me.”

“No, I ain’t shittin’ you,” Steve said, laughing. “They’re a different species. The Cavendish only came around in the 50s. I thought I was going nuts, eating bland bananas for two years, and then I finally Googled it – Sam laughed for about an hour straight about it.”

As he said this, Darcy opened her phone and began to search up bananas and found he was telling the truth, that Gros Michel bananas were a creamier and far tastier banana prior to being totally eclipsed by the Cavendish.

“Oh, _wow_ ,” Darcy said. “I had no idea.”

“Clothes I don’t mind, actually,” Steve said, and Darcy smirked, remembering the girls he’d matched with, wearing different types of flattering clothes, including tight streetwear that hugged their curves. “What do you miss?”

Darcy looked away, wondering what she meant to say. Her mind went to her home life and she winced.

“I don’t miss my dad – I just miss the feeling of thinking he’d always be there,” she said. She let out a little sigh. “I haven’t seen him in two years, and… I don’t really want to. It’s hard to want to be around someone who left you by choice.”

She let her eyes swing back to meet Steve’s and he pressed his lips together, nodding.

“Boo-hoo, poor me,” Darcy whispered.

“It’s fine, Darcy,” Steve said, and she bit her lip. “And… if it makes you feel any better, I think I’m gonna know you forever.”

Darcy felt her stomach flip and she swallowed, not sure what to say. She kept still, the sounds of the woman describing the pair of earrings she was modelling on the little velvet pouf filling the spaces between them.

“I’d love that,” Darcy said. “If things turned out that way.”

She put her phone away, settling next to him again, feeling a blush creep over her.

Their hands were lying beside one another on the couch between their bodies and Darcy looked down at them, seeing Steve’s turn slightly, his fingers stretching toward her knuckles.

Darcy mirrored him, reaching, and then their fingers entwined and she let her breath go, her eyes on the TV as they lapsed into a comfortable silence.

She woke alone, but she didn’t mind. It was after seven, and Clint was standing over her with a bowl of cereal, inspecting her.

“Kiddo, you were old cold.”

“That for me?”

“Hell, no,” he said, holding the bowl out of her reach. “You better move your ass, it’s my designated TV time.”

She groaned and stretched, Clint settling beside her as she looked around. She remembered holding Steve’s hand and wondered if it meant what she wanted it to mean.

“You good?”

“Yeah,” Darcy said, and she managed to steal his spoon, laughing in triumph as Clint spilt milk on himself to snatch it back.

-

She couldn’t sleep because she couldn’t stop thinking about Steve.

She kept replaying each night they spent together, laughing and joking together, all the snacks and stupid little conversations. She’d begun to hope, and it scared her a lot. She hadn’t felt this way about anyone in a while. She honestly hadn’t looked for it, and she hadn’t thought it would be Steve.

She brushed her hair after two AM, pulling it into a ponytail as she took the elevator up. Her stomach was full of butterflies, and she wondered if he’d even be there. She thought it was a possibility that she’d scared him off by how she’d not been woken up the other night.

She was searching for him, she knew that. It wasn’t worth denying.

She walked into the common room and didn’t see him on the couch, and her heart sunk, but then she heard footfalls behind her and spun around, seeing Steve standing with a bowl of popcorn.

“Hey.”

“Hey,” she echoed.

He put the popcorn down and Darcy sat on the couch, perched on her knees, her hands together in her lap. He followed her, putting his arm across the back of the couch.

“What do you wanna watch?” he asked, and she smiled at him.

A couple hours later, Darcy felt the shift in the air, of a countdown nearing its end. It must have begun when he touched her last, and now…

“I might go,” Steve said, which he’d never done before.

He always left the spot after her, no matter the time, except for the last time they were together. Darcy felt her head beat pick up speed, her tummy flipping.

“Okay.”

They’d just finished _Top Hat_ , and Darcy had tried her hardest to be absorbed in the story, but once _Cheek to Cheek_ had stopped playing, it was hard to not think of the man beside her, and how right it felt to be next to him.

He turned in his seat, his eyes scanning her face, falling to her mouth.

“Goodnight.”

They moved toward one another, though Darcy was sure Steve did it first, ever so slightly. She thought of their lips crashing together, but it didn’t turn out that way. Their foreheads pressed together and Steve let out a breath of a laugh.

“Steve…”

“I know,” he whispered. “I know…”

She let out a slow breath, smelling him more than ever, the sweetness to his skin, which was warm against hers. Darcy tilted her head slightly and closed her eyes, lifting her lips to press to his with a sigh. It was simple, yet so affirming Darcy couldn’t deny it as Steve returned it, his hand coming up to thread through her hair.

It felt so good. He wanted her, and she wanted him, and she felt giddy, tilting her head, both his hands holding her now as he licked slowly inside her mouth.

She gave a little moan when he deepened the kiss, her hands reaching up to pull him into her, fingers under his shirt to feel his skin.

She gripped him tighter to retaliate when each kiss grew a greedy edge, pulling away from him and panting, Steve’s warm breath on her lips still as he tried to catch her in another kiss.

His eyes were dark with intent and he dove back in again, devouring her as they began to back out of the common room. They managed to reach the elevator as Steve backed her into the wall next to it, his hand reaching out to press the button to call it.

“This was your idea?” Darcy panted, his lips moving down her jaw to her neck, and she shivered, closing her eyes once more. “Get me to run after you?”

“I was taking you to bed tonight, Lewis, I just hadn’t figured out how to tell you that…”

He pulled back as the elevator doors opened, lifting her off the floor with ease and manoeuvring her into the car, Darcy’s eyes widening.

He held her by the hips against the wall so she was at eye-level. She blinked at him, feeling the heat in her cheeks rise.

“It’s, uh, it’s effective,” she said, and he promptly placed her back on the floor.

He crowded her once he hit the button for his floor, Darcy’s arms around his neck as he kissed her with more tenderness, but he was still thorough, the air sucked out of her. She grabbed his hand to shove it under her pyjama shirt, and she was lifted up again, her legs wrapping around Steve’s middle as she was dragged up the wall of the car.

She began to giggle and he copied her, kissing her neck and brushing the hair from her face, drawing back to look her in the eye.

“I love you,” he said, and Darcy cupped his jaw, pulling him into a slower kiss.

She pulled back first, their foreheads together.

“I love you, too.”

-

He carried her through his apartment, clothes tugged off along the way, his mouth never leaving her body in the process, which made it harder to get either of their shirts off.

“Steve, gimme a sec –”

They were tussling on his bed, and Steve let her pin him as she knelt above him, peeling off her shirt and bra underneath, her hands reaching to tug Steve’s shirt off as well.

Her hand was already behind her butt, reaching to pull down his underwear and Steve obliged, Darcy’s hips lifting as he shoved them down the rest of the way, and she turned her head to look, seeing he was thick and uncut, standing to attention for her.

He took the opportunity to flip them, Darcy’s surprised laugh escaping as he tackled her, their legs tangling as he rocked into her, Darcy’s moan followed by his.

He loved to take hold of her face to kiss her deep, and Darcy moaned into another heady kiss, tugging his lip with her teeth at the end of it, and he gave a soft growl, grinding into her once more. His hand slipped down to tug her underwear down, and Darcy gave a little hiss when he felt between her legs, finding her hot and wet.

“You’re soaking,” he whispered, and Darcy nodded, putting a hand on her face, feeling herself flush.

He didn’t seem smug, only appreciative, plying her hand away from her face and kissing her again, light at first as he circled her clit with his fingers.

“I don’t have any condoms,” he admitted, and Darcy blinked up at him, the feel of him playing with her distracting. “I wanna… I still wanna stick it in for a sec –”

“You can, I’m on the pill,” Darcy said, remembering, and he smiled down at her.

“Yeah?”

“Yeah, I – _fuck_ ,” she gasped, because she was trying to come. “ _Steve_ …”

She whimpered when he pulled back, but he was shuffling toward the end of the bed, settling on his stomach and pulling her toward him by the hips.

“C’mere, c’mere,” he whispered, and he sealed his mouth over her cunt, everything so warm, his enthusiasm like nothing Darcy had experienced before.

He stayed there until she came a few minutes later, licking it all away, emerging with a wet mouth he tried to wipe on his shoulder, climbing back up her to settle in the cradle of her hips.

“Want you to come,” Darcy whispered, their noses brushing. “It’s your turn…”

They both groaned when he pushed inside her, Darcy’s arms wrapping around him, lifting her chin to kiss him again. He began to thrust slowly at first, his grip on her thigh and side tight.

He kept taking deep breaths, letting them go on shaky exhales.

“Shit…”

Darcy watched as he began to rock a little faster, going deeper as Darcy clung him tighter, encouraging him. He pulled back to look at her and Darcy didn’t want to look away.

His eyes were _so_ blue, and this close up, she could see the little freckles on his nose and cheeks.

“You’re so beautiful,” she breathed, and he let out a little chuckle, sweat forming on his brow as he shook his head.

“Nah, sweetheart…”

“Shut up, old man, you look good for your age,” she retorted, and he kissed her, sloppier.

She held him tight, feeling like she was climbing it with him, all the way to the top. He came with a broken moan, his hips losing momentum as he spilled inside her, his face buried in her neck.

He was still inside her when he came up for air, his eyes hooded. It felt like a dream then, seeing him this much looser.

They fell asleep as a tangle of limbs, Steve’s lips brushing her forehead.

-

Darcy felt the mattress dip and she rolled over, seeing Steve’s back to her, and she reached for him, touching his arm.

“What time is it?”

He turned back around, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

“Go back to sleep. It’s after six.”

“Where are you going?” she whispered, and he glanced toward the door for a second.

“I was gonna go for a run.”

“Stay,” she said, and she was pulling him back into her, her hands on the hem of his shirt and pulling it back up.

She felt more awake with each needy glide of his tongue against hers, breathing him in with a happy sigh.

These between hours, she didn’t hate them anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> [Cheek to Cheek](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ILxo-TUkzOQ&t=149s)   
>  [Begin the Beguine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ti0FnSLBXSM)
> 
> [my Tumblr](http://grimeysociety.tumblr.com/)


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